by natureswayrdev | Mineral Articles
John's Corner: Gold (Au): Minerals 38 The Elements and What They Do (Part 38) By: John Ferguson 79) Gold (Au) – Gold is a member of the group of metals known as “Noble” metals. It derives its name from the Latin, aurum,meaning “glow of...
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John's Corner: Ytterbium (Yb): Minerals 37 The Elements and What They Do (Part 37) By: John Ferguson 70) Ytterbium (Yb) – A soft silvery white metal that is slowly oxidized by air and reacts slowly with water. It is a member of the rare earth elements but twice...
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John's Corner: Europium (Eu): Minerals 36 The Elements and What They Do (Part 36) By: John Ferguson 63) Europium (Eu) – As you might have guessed, Europium is named for the continent Europe and is the 50th most common element on earth. It is a soft silvery metal...
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John's Corner: Lanthanum (La): Minerals 35 The Elements and What They Do (Part 35) By: John Ferguson 57) Lanthanum (La) – Lanthanum is the first element of a group that we call the “Rare Earth” elements or “Lanthanides”. If one looks at...
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John's Corner: Xenon (Xe): Minerals 34 The Elements and What They Do (Part 34) By: John Ferguson 54) Xenon (Xe) – Xenon is the fifth member of the inert gases that we call “noble gases” as they do not react with anything, and is located in the far...
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John's Corner: Antimony (Sb): Minerals 33 The Elements and What They Do (Part 33) By: John Ferguson 51) Antimony (Sb) – Antimony is an element sometimes referred to as a metalloid. It is metallic in appearance (bright and silvery) but brittle, and with...
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John's Corner: Cadmium (Cd): Minerals 32 The Elements and What They Do (Part 32) By: John Ferguson 48) Cadmium (Cd) – Cadmium Is a silvery metal that will tarnish in air (like silver). It will dissolve in acids but not in alkalis. It is a heavy metal that damages all...
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John's Corner: Rhodium (Rh): Minerals 31 The Elements and What They Do (Part 31) By: John Ferguson 45) Rhodium (Rh) – Rhodium is a shiny silvery white, very hard metal of group 9 on the periodic table and is the least common of the platinum group metals. As one...
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John's Corner: Niobium (Nb): Minerals 30 The Elements and What They Do (Part 30) By: John Ferguson 41) Niobium (Nb) – It is 34th most common element in the earth’s crust and is relatively common. It is a soft grayish ductile metal of group 4 on the...
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John's Corner: Yttrium (Y): Minerals 29 The Elements and What They Do (Part 29) By: John Ferguson 39) Yttrium (Y) – One writer describes Yttrium as a “hippy” element. Yttrium is a silvery metal of group 3 of the periodic table and behaves chemically...
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John's Corner: Krypton (Kr): Minerals 28 The Elements and What They Do (Part 28) By: John Ferguson Krypton (Kr) – Krypton is another of the “Noble” gases as it refuse to bond with other elements. In nature, krypton is a clear odorless gas. Krypton is...
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John's Corner: Bromine (br): Minerals 27 The Elements and What They Do (Part 27) By: John Ferguson 35) Bromine (Br) – The name comes from the Greek word bromos which means stench. We use the name Bromine when this element exists as the molecule Br 2 (two atoms...
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John's Corner: Selenium (Se): Minerals 26 The Elements and What They Do (Part 26) By: John Ferguson 34) Selenium (Se) – In general selenium is found in igneous rocks at 0.05 ppm, shale at 0.6 ppm, sandstone and limestone at 0.05-0.08 ppm, fresh water at 0.02...
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John's Corner: Minerals 25 The Elements and What They Do (Part 25) By: John Ferguson 33) Arsenic (As) – Arsenic is a metalloid that has two common forms, grey or alpha-arsenic which is metallic, brittle, tarnishes, burns in oxygen and resists attack by water,...
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John's Corner: Germanium (Ge): Minerals 24 The Elements and What They Do (Part 24) By: John Ferguson 32) Germanium (Ge): Germanium is an element that is known as a metalloid as it has properties in between those of metals and nonmetals, or that it has a mixture of...
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John's Corner: Gallium (Ga): Minerals 23 The Elements and What They Do (Part 23) By: John Ferguson 31) Gallium (Ga) – Gallium is the 34th most abundant element on Earth and is found on average in the earth’s crust at 18 ppm. Gallium is a soft silvery-white...
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John's Corner: Zinc (Zn): Minerals 22 The Elements and What They Do (Part 22) By: John Ferguson 30) Zinc (Zn) – Zinc is a blue-white metal that is brittle when cast, it tarnishes easily, and it chemically reacts with both acids and alkalis. Zinc was first...
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John's Corner: Cooper (Cu): Minerals 21 The Elements and What They Do (Part 21) By: John Ferguson 29) Copper (Cu) – Copper is a common and very useful metal. It is used to make bronze and brass, copper coins, jewelry, cups and goblets to electrical wiring. ...
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John's Corner: Nickel (Ni): Minerals 20 The Elements and What They Do (Part 20) By: John Ferguson 28) Nickel (Ni) – Nickel is a metal that is in Group 10 of the periodic table which contains what is known as the platinum group metals (palladium, platinum,...
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John's Corner: Cobalt (Co): Minerals 19 The Elements and What They Do (Part 19) By: John Ferguson 27) Cobalt (Co): The name comes from the German word “kobald” which means goblin. Miners mined an ore called “smalite” which is cobalt arsenide...
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John's Corner: Iron (Fe): Minerals 18 The Elements and What They Do (Part 18) By: John Ferguson 26) Iron (Fe) – Iron is the fourth most abundant element in the earth’s crust and is a component of many rock forming minerals. Iron is found in igneous rocks...
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John's Corner: Manganese (Mn): Minerals 17 The Elements and What They Do (Part 17) By: John Ferguson 25) Manganese (Mn) – Manganese is a metal found in group 7 of the periodic table of elements. Manganese is a hard brittle silvery metal that will burn in oxygen...
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John's Corner: Chromium (Cr): Minerals 16 The Elements and What They Do (Part 16) By: John Ferguson 24) Chromium (Cr) – The name comes from the Greek word “chroma” which means color, as the various salts of chromium are brightly colored. Chromium is...
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John's Corner: Vanadium (V): Minerals 15 The Elements and What They Do (Part 15) By: John Ferguson 23) Vanadium (V) – Vanadium is a silvery grey metal and occurs naturally in over 70 minerals and is essential for all living organisms. Vanadium is found in...
